The Armenian lobby is pushing Congress to vote on the so-called “Armenian Genocide Resolution,” H.Res. 252. There is a chance that it may come to a vote before Congress adjourns, today or tomorrow.

We urge Turkish Americans and friends of Turkey to contact your member of Congress by PHONE to urge him/her to VOTE AGAINST this resolution. Please click here and type-in your zip code to get to your Representative’s information. To send your message by E-MAIL, please click here.

Here are some discussion points:
** Bad for national security: Incirlik Airbase; partnership in Afghanistan; cooperation in Iraq, energy security, etc.
** Bad for foreign policy in the Balkans, Caucasus and Middle East, where Turkey continues to work with us on moderation.
** Highly negative for the bilateral commercial relationship where we have had billion dollar sales in commercial aviation and continue to have strong prospects for multi-billion dollar deals in aerospace alone. These are real American jobs. Nothing remotely comparable comes from Armenia commercial relations.
** Approval in the House will certainly result in the withdrawal of the Ambassador and an extended downturn in bilateral relations, with no benefits for any of the American people, apart from the Diaspora.
** The Obama Administration opposes Floor passage; both the Defense Department and State are active on Capitol Hill in their opposition.
** The Resolution was passed by the HFAC by the narrowest of margins — one vote. The American people and American interests deserve better than to be asked to deal with the destruction that will be left in the wake of this political grenade thrown by a leadership that is going out the door.

Jewish-Turkish Relations Throughout History: From the 15th century Spanish Inquisition to the Holocaust
A discussion about remarkable — and widely unknown — events that shaped Jewish-Turkish relations throughout history at the hands of visionaries like Sultan Bayezid II, Einstein, Ataturk, and Turkish Diplomats, Behiç Erkin, Namık Kemal Yolga, Necdet Kent, and Selahattin Ülkümen

TCA Ranks Third in Groups Sponsoring International Congressional Travel

September 24, 2010, Washington, DC – According to a report by U.S. News and World Report, the Turkish Coalition of America ranks third in the list of American organizations sponsoring trips for members of Congress and staff in 2009-2010. The list is headed by the American Israel Education Foundation, an affiliate of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). The Aspen Institute, a non-partisan think-tank ranks second and the German Marshall Fund ranks fourth in the list.

Since May 2009, TCA organized and sponsored seven congressional delegation trips, taking 80 congressional staffers and five members of Congress to Turkey. Its last two trips included visits to Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Republic of Macedonia.

The article reported: “The biggest spender on trips during the 111th Congress has been the American Israel Education Foundation (AIEF). Since January 1, 2009, AIEF has funded trips for 154 Congress members and staff, at a cumulative cost of $1,619,755. All of these trips were to Israel, with the stated purpose of educating Congress members and staffers about the U.S.-Israel relationship.

The Turkish Coalition of America, whose trips work toward “combating ongoing misinformation about Turkey” and “helping people understand why it is that the U.S.-Turkish relationship is so valuable,” has spent $545,710 on 85 trips for lawmakers and staffers during that time period.”

TABAN is an ATAA nationwide grassroots education campaign, made possible with the sponsorship of Turkish Coalition of America, to activate Turkish Americans in grassroots efforts. The workshop will cover the importance of community advocacy, civic and political involvement.

Program is free and open to all ages
Seminar covers pre-Islamic Turkish History (Islam oncesi Turk tarihi), Adopting Islam & Migration to Middle East (Islam’a gecis ve Orta Doguya goc); Ottomans and Ottoman Empire; ATATURK and Modern Turkey; and concludes with Turkey’s Geography and Strategic Importance.

Ergun Kırlıkovalı*
“Advocacy: The art of influencing public policy through proactive public education”

Date: Saturday, April 10th 2010
Time: 2:00PM-5:00PM
Place: Baldwin Auditorium – Lurie Research Building
Northwestern University
302 E. Superior Street, Chicago 60611
Special parking rate available at 222 E. Huron ($7). For validation talk to us before or after the conference.

Call Your Congressman NOT to Co-Sponsor and to Vote AGAINST H.Res. 252
The so-called “Armenian Genocide Resolution,” H.Res. 252, has been scheduled for a vote at the House Foreign Affairs Committee on March 4, 2010.

We urge Turkish Americans and friends of Turkey to contact your member of Congress NOW and urge him/her NOT to co-sponsor and VOTE AGAINST this resolution.

TCA also urges all Turkish Americans to contact their community organizations and take the lead to activate the Turkish American grassroots by visiting members of Congress and their staff in their district offices and raise their concerns and objections on the issue. Factual information, such as articles by historians and other documents on the subject can be found here.

To send the already prepared letter to your representative please click here, simply add your name and address, and send the email. It will be matched and sent to your member of Congress automatically.

To send a custom letter, please first go to www.house.gov, enter your zip code (on the left corner of the top banner) to find your Representative, and click on his/her name to go to your Representative’s website. Once you go to your Representative’s web site just find and click on “E-mail” box, then fill out your name, address info and your message and send the email. To see a sample email by Erol Yorulmazoglu, M.D., click here.